Elite encounters on the agenda

The final lineup for the Elite round of the 2004/05 UEFA European Under-19 Championship has been determined after the first qualifying round was concluded on Monday, with 2004 winners Spain among several sides facing a tough task to reach next summer's final tournament in Northern Ireland.

Spanish bye
The holders, who won the trophy against Turkey in Switzerland in July, were given a bye to the second round and have been placed in Group 3, where they face Group 4 winners France, Portugal -who finished first in Group 11 - and Israel.

Five finalists through
Turkey and the Swiss both failed to progress from the first qualifying round, but all the other five finalists from this summer's event safely booked their places in the Elite round. Germany finished second in Group 3 behind Serbia and Montenegro and face the Czech Republic, who also qualified automatically for the second round, the Netherlands – who won all three Group 7 games - and Croatia in Group 2.

Automatic qualifiers
The other automatic qualifiers are England, who missed out on the 2004 finals but are placed in Group 1 in the Elite round, together with Moldova, who squeezed through as the best third-ranked team, and Scandinavian pair Denmark and Sweden, who qualified having amassed a maximum nine points from their three Group 10 matches.

Familiar foes
Two sides who met in the 2004 finals come face to face again in Group 4, with 2003 winners Italy and Group 8 winners Belgium - who both failed to qualify for the knockout stages in Switzerland - joined by Hungary, who finished top of Group 1, and Armenia. First-round group winners Slovakia and Austria look to be the strongest contenders in Group 5, although Scotland and Greece will be looking to upset the favourites.

Shoot-out setback
Ukraine reached the semi-finals earlier this year before losing to Spain on penalties, and qualified as Group 6 winners this time round. Russia, winners of Group 9 in the first qualifying round, look to be the biggest threat to the Ukrainians in Group 6, although Lithuania and Norway will also be out to impress.

Strong section
Finally, Poland lost all three finals games last July and face a tough task in Group 7, with Group 6 winners Albania, Serbia and Montenegro, first in Group 3, and the Republic of Ireland forming the opposition. The full table with information on all seven qualifying groups appears below - the hosts of each section will be revealed at a later date, with the games taking place next spring.

N.B. Automatic qualifiers for the Elite round in bold. The winners of each second-round group will join hosts Northern Ireland at next summer's final tournament.

*Best third-placed team in the first qualifying round.